- No. 8 Alabama extended its winning streak to five games after defeating No. 14 Missouri 27-24.
- Indiana is making a case as one of the best teams in the nation after a 30-20 road victory against No. 2 Oregon.
- Penn State’s season took a turn for the worse with a third consecutive loss and a season-ending injury to quarterback Drew Allar.
No. 8 Alabama’s five-game winning streak on the heels of a loss to Florida State to open the season has the Crimson Tide making big plans to win the SEC, reach the College Football Playoff and take home the national championship.
Four of the five wins are against Power Four opponents. Three have come against the SEC. All three of the conference victories are against ranked teams: No. 9 Georgia, No. 20 Vanderbilt and now No. 14 Missouri.
The Tide’s 27-24 win against the Tigers featured another shining performance from quarterback Ty Simpson, who had 200 yards and three touchdowns. The last of his three scores, with about three minutes left, gave Alabama an insurmountable 10-point cushion.
Alabama snapped Missouri’s 15-game home winning streak, previously the second-longest run in the Bowl Subdivision.
The Tide’s own winning streak has rewritten the presumption coming out of the Florida State loss. After a brutally disappointing end of last year, the sluggish start stoked the rising discontent with how Kalen DeBoer had managed the program as Nick Saban’s successor.
Looking back, it’s possible that 2024 was an outlier for Alabama. Looking at DeBoer’s résumé, last season’s misstep stands out among otherwise near-perfect runs at Sioux Falls, Fresno State and Washington.
And looking forward, this year’s team seems much better equipped to handle the rigors of SEC play. The Tide take on another three teams in this week’s US LBM Coaches Poll, starting with No. 12 Tennessee, and finish with the Iron Bowl.
Alabama, Indiana and Penn State lead Saturday’s biggest winners and losers:
Winners
Indiana
No. 7 Indiana might be the best team in the Big Ten. In fact, Indiana might be the best team in the FBS. After beating No. 2 Oregon 30-20 on the road, the Hoosiers must to be taken very seriously not just as an out-of-nowhere success story but a legitimate heavyweight capable of beating any and every opponent in the country. They were never scared or intimidated by the Ducks, setting the tone with a key fourth-down stop on the game’s first possession and then dominating the line of scrimmage with 128 rushing yards before 17 yards of losses in kneel downs while making six sacks and eight tackles for loss. This is a team with no obvious flaws.
Ohio State
The No. 1 Buckeyes scored a second very strong road win in Big Ten play by beating No. 17 Illinois 34-16 behind two touchdown passes from quarterback Julian Sayin. Offensively, Ohio State managed just 272 yards and averaged only 2.9 yards per carry, But the defense continued to play like the nation’s best unit by allowing just 1.7 yards per carry and forcing three turnovers. Error-free play on offense and this elite defense are the key factors behind the Buckeyes’ ability to go back-to-back.
Arch Manning
Manning avoided any turnovers for just the second game this season and helped No. 19 Texas score a season-saving 23-6 win against No. 6 Oklahoma. While not especially explosive, Manning completed 21 pf 27 attempts for 166 yards and a score with another 34 yards on the ground, outplaying a clearly limited John Mateer to keep the Longhorns in the mix for the playoff. Like with Ohio State and Sayin, the Longhorns’ easiest blueprint for success rides an effective running game, ball protection and an attacking defense.
Southern California
Beating No. 15 Michigan 31-13 is the marquee moment for USC as members of the Big Ten, which says a little something about how things have gone since the start of last season but more about the fact that this year’s team could be a playoff contender. After going 7-6 a year ago, the Trojans are now 5-1 behind what is one of the top offenses in college football. USC had 265 passing yards, 224 rushing yards and averaged 6.2 yards per carry. The defense held Michigan to a season-low 109 yards on the ground.
UCLA
UCLA has looked mighty good the past two weeks. After shocking Penn State at home, the Bruins took their show on the road and blasted Michigan State 38-13. Nico Iamaleava tossed three more touchdowns without an interception and the running game churned out 238 yards after going for 269 yards against the Nittany Lions. Following a 0-4 start and looking like one of the worst teams in the country, UCLA has a chance to rally toward bowl eligibility thanks to a rejuvenated offense that has maximized what Iamaleava brings to the table.
Colorado
The Buffaloes and Deion Sanders are back in the bowl mix after beating No. 21 Iowa State 24-17 to snap a three-game Big 12 losing streak. Quarterback Kaidon Salter went for 255 yards and two touchdowns but the win was delivered by the defense, which delivered a key interception and a fourth-down stop in the fourth quarter. While the Cyclones ran for 236 yards and had 441 yards overall, those two moments and very solid play throughout the game on third down made the difference.
Losers
Penn State
A third loss in a row, and this one maybe even worse than last week’s meltdown at the Rose Bowl. Penn State lost 22-21 at home to Northwestern after the defense failed to stop the Wildcats’ 75-yard, nearly six-minute touchdown drive to take the lead late in the fourth quarter. To make matters worse, quarterback Drew Allar went out in the fourth quarter with a season-ending injury. After an unimpressive non-conference slate, the Nittany Lions are winless through three Big Ten games and headed toward one of the most disappointing years in program history. This has been an astonishing plummet out of the national picture that threatens to swallow up James Franklin and lead to massive offseason changes.
Auburn
What if Jackson Arnold had scored from a yard out and put Auburn ahead 17-0 late in the first half? The complexion of the rivalry against No. 9 Georgia changed in that moment, as the Bulldogs drove for a field goal to head into the break down 10-3 and with momentum. Even then, the Tigers had several shots in the second half to retake control. That they couldn’t is the result of an offense that has no explosiveness, gets almost nothing at quarterback and makes way too many mistakes. Georgia put the game away with a soul-draining, nine-minute touchdown drive in the fourth quarter to win 20-10.
Oklahoma
After returning to action just 17 days after hand surgery, Mateer tossed three interceptions as the Sooners’ offense failed to capitalize on a solid start before disappearing completely in the second half. Should Oklahoma have played backup Michael Hawkins Jr., who started last week’s win against Kent State? While coach Brent Venables has fixed the defense, the Sooners have to rally on offense behind a leaky offensive line to have a chance to stay afloat in the playoff race against one of the toughest second-half schedules of any team in the country.
Wisconsin
It’s going to be really hard for Luke Fickell to rally from the depths of a 37-0 loss to Iowa that feels like the program’s lowest point in decades. Down 17-0 after the first quarter and 23-0 at halftime, Wisconsin didn’t advance past the Iowa 40-yard line in the second half. Injuries and inexperience are the two primary culprits for this year’s misery, but the program’s rapid decline overall is one fallout from recruiting misses and inadequate work in the transfer portal. The Hawkeyes have scored at least 37 points in three of their past four games, by the way.
Florida State
That win against Alabama feels like months and months ago. What’s happened since is a burgeoning disaster: Florida State has dropped three in a row in the ACC, capped by a 34-31 loss to Pittsburgh that saw the Seminoles cough up a field goal lead entering the fourth quarter. So, this isn’t a playoff team, obviously, or even a team that’s going to play for the ACC crown. How much more time does coach Mike Norvell have before his seat returns to the same scorching level as last season?
Toledo
The MAC is anyone’s for the taking given how Toledo has flopped right out of the gate. The Rockets led Eddie George and Bowling Green 21-0 in the second quarter but wouldn’t score again until the Falcons took a safety with no time left. The loss drops Toledo to 1-2 in conference play and winless on the year in three road games.